Snow Angel
by Deplora
Summary: [OneShot][Squffie][Xmas gift to Squffielovers everywhere] Yuffie wants a white Christmas, but Squall tells her it won't snow. Will it? And what happens if it does? Really, an excuse for fluff!


_Author's Note: This is my Christmas gift to Squffie-lovers everywhere. In particular, this is my gift to all the members of the SquffieLove community at LiveJournal and the Vulpes Lapis for making me write most times when I would just veg out in front of the Playstation and stare at Squall and drool... _

_And this is a oneshot, so don't expect anymore updates on it._

_Timeframe: Somewhere in the middle of Kingdom Hearts. Well, it would be Christmas in the middle of Kingdom Hearts. And, let's say that KH started like in between August and November, so that Yuffie's now 17 and Squall is still 25. :-)_

_Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone!!!_

_Disclaimer: I love writing these. Really, I do. Anyways, I do not own Kingdom Hearts or the characters portrayed within. They belong to their rightful owners of Disney and SquareSoft or SquareEnix or SquareWhatever. Squall only belongs to me in my dreams. And dream I do._

* * *

_SNOW ANGEL_

"So, do you think it's gonna snow, Squall?" Yuffie asked enthusiastically as she leaned on the windowsill of the lone window in the Green Room and stared out at the perpetually dark skies. A chill from the frigid air outside caused her to step away, rubbing her upper arms as she did so; she had traded in her trademark halter top and shorts for long blue jeans and a sweatshirt two months ago when the weather turned colder. But, right now, she was wearing the baggy sweat pants and sweatshirt she would sleep in that night.

Instead of the answer Yuffie would have expected two months ago, an immediate glare and an 'It's Leon,' Squall simply strode over to her and wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. It had been a month since the ninja realized the love she had for the Gunblade wielder was mutual. "I highly doubt it, Yuffie," he told her, resting his chin atop her head and staring up at the cloudless skies.

"But wouldn't it just be _so_ cool if it _did _snow tonight and we could have a white Christmas?" the ninja insisted, leaning her head back against the muscled chest behind her and tilting her face up to look at him. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the tiny, foot tall fir tree she had found somehow growing behind Cid's shop. She assumed it had managed to find enough light from the streetlights and enough nutrients from between the cobblestones to scrape out a meager existence. And now, it was planted in a large pot Yuffie had _purchased_, or rather, _stolen_, from the triplet ducklings. Two small boxes, wrapped in foil paper with curled ribbons tied around them, sat beneath it, their presents to each other.

"Yuffie, when was the last time it snowed in Traverse Town?" Squall inquired in what would have been a seemingly innocent tone if one did not know the answer to his question.

The ninja turned around in his grip and backed up a few paces to get out of his arms, placing her hands on her hips and giving him a stern glare. "Just because it hasn't snowed _once_ since we've been here doesn't mean it _won't_," she insisted, rolling her dark indigo eyes at the end of the statement.

Squall's sighed deeply and closed his eyes, shaking his head slightly and making the long mahogany locks sway from side to side. "Yuffie..."

"And don't you go trying to tell me that it _isn't_ going to snow because I _know_ it is," Yuffie said firmly, taking the few steps towards him and standing on her tiptoes to place a light kiss on his lips.

To this, Squall said nothing, instead simply wrapping his arms around her waist and letting his hands rest lightly on her lower back. When Yuffie began to pull away after what she intended to be a quick kiss, he pulled her back and deepened the kiss, moving one hand up to cradle the back of her neck and keeping the other on her lower back to hold her in place.

When the kiss ended, Squall pulled away just enough so that he could rest his forehead against hers and fix his stormy blue eyes on hers. "I just don't want to listen to you _whine_ tomorrow when you wake up and find out that it _didn't_ snow," he chided, a slight smile that he reserved only for her coming across his face.

Yuffie pulled back, narrowing her eyes and glaring at him once more. "I do _not_whine, Squall! I merely complain in a petulant manner," she told him, having to bite her lip to keep the grin off her face and the laughter from bubbling out of her throat.

"Have you checked the definition for the word 'whine' lately?" Squall asked, raising an eyebrow to stare at her as her shoulders began to tremble with suppressed giggles.

She couldn't hold it in any longer and began chortling uncontrollably, one hand covering her gaping mouth and the other holding her stomach. "Yes," she managed to gasp out between giggles. "That's where I got it from."

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Squall once again shook his head at the girl and sighed. He turned his back to her, ignoring her peals of laughter, and pulled back the blankets on the bed before sitting down on the edge and staring at her. "Are you going to bed anytime soon or are you just going to keep laughing?" he finally asked, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning against the headboard of the bed.

Yuffie stifled her laughter and smiled at him before slowly walking over to the bed. "Okay, spoilsport. For the sake of you, I will stop laughing and go to bed," she replied sweetly as she sat next to him, placing a hand on his knee and giving it a gentle squeeze.

Sighing, Squall pulled his shirt over his head and threw it in the direction of the clothes hamper. Even though the room was cold enough for Yuffie to sleep in a sweatshirt, Squall would still sleep shirtless, something that didn't bother Yuffie in the least; she enjoyed the feeling of his warm chest against her cheek as she slept snuggled up next to him. Plus, Squall just looked _dead sexy _without his shirt on and she had told him as much on occasion.

Squall reached over and turned the lamp off, enveloping the room in complete darkness save for the sliver of moonlight coming through the window. He then slid down the headboard until he was lying on his back with Yuffie curled up on his right side and her head resting on his chest. As she better situated herself, Squall let out a loud yelp. "GO PUT SOME SOCKS ON OR SOMETHING! YOU HAVE REALLY COLD FEET! he bellowed, pulling his legs away from her and her icy feet.

- - - - - - - - - -

The next morning, Yuffie awoke shivering and cuddled closer to Squall for warmth before cracking her eyes open to peer out the dark window of the room. Her eyes widened at the sight of small white flakes floating down from the sky and alighting upon a growing pile of white on the outside of the window sill. She blinked a few times, making sure she wasn't seeing things before bounding out of the bed and running onto the balcony with just the socks Squall had forced on her covering her feet.

"It's snowing!" she exclaimed under her breath, looking down at the alleyway and the thin layer of snow that covered everything. The cold quickly seeped through her socks and chilled her feet, making her dash back into the much warmer room and strip them off in exchange for dry ones.

Shoving her feet into a pair of boots, Yuffie ran out into the hotel hallway and out into the Second District, forgoing her coat in her excitement.

The sound of the Green Room door slamming shut awakened Squall, who groaned and rolled over, reaching across the bed to locate Yuffie. His hand fell upon the still warm mattress and his stormy blue eyes opened to search for his bed mate. "Yuffie?" he whispered to the empty room, sitting up and looking at the clock above the connecting door to the Red Room. It was just barely seven in the morning, a time when his ninja would normally still be soundly sleeping; yet, he found himself completely alone in the room.

A sudden fear that perhaps the Heartless had attacked and Yuffie had gone to fight them by herself, as she was prone to do occasionally, hit Squall, and he quickly jumped out of the bed and unknowingly followed the same path she had taken: out into the hotel hallway and into the Second District. It wasn't until he was outside, standing barefoot in the four inches of snow and hearing Yuffie's squeals of delight coming from some unseen place that he realized he was still clad only in his pajama bottoms and nothing else. Before anyone could see him or before he caught hypothermia, Squall dove back into the hotel to put on warmer clothes.

A few minutes later, the Gunblade wielder ventured _back_ out into the snow; this time with a heavy coat and boots accompanying his sweatshirt and blue jeans. Snow flakes drifted down and landed on his nose, melting almost instantly as he stared up at the dark sky. It had been a little over nine years since he had seen _any_ snow _any_where. That had been before Hollow Bastion had fallen and, on that world, the snows came early and lasted for nearly half the year.

He hadn't missed the snow at all, claiming it only managed to slow things down and cause problems. But, Yuffie, on the other hand, had been praying for snow since the day they arrived in Traverse Town. Every winter it was the same thing with her; she would stare out the window and talk about how much she wanted it to snow. And, every year, the winter would pass without so much as a snowflake. That is, until this year.

Still thinking about Yuffie, Squall didn't notice when the ninja in question snuck up behind him with a handful of snow. Nor did he feel the collar of his shirt being gently tugged backwards. But, he _did_ feel when she let the snow drop from her gloveless hand and slide down his back, chilling him and causing a shiver to race up his spine instantly.

He spun around to glare at the culprit, whose indigo eyes had gone wide and innocent looking as she gave him her best 'puppy dog eyes,' a look she _knew _he couldn't get mad at. And, she was right, for Squall's face softened at the sight and he simply rubbed his forehead with a gloved hand for he had remembered to dress more warmly than she.

"That was cold, you know," Squall told her, staring down at her and trying his hardest to be mad at her. It was impossible with her eyes looking at him like that, eyes that actually sparkled for the first time in years.

"I know it was. Why else would I do it?" Yuffie asked sweetly, tilting her head to the side slightly and giving him the 'I'm-so-cute-and-you-know-it' smile. That was another look she had found him unable to refuse.

He still managed to give her a stern glance despite the smile and eyes.

"Oh, come on, Squall! Lighten up a little and have some fun!" she insisted, grabbing his hand and tugging him down the steps and into the lower portions of the Second District, where the snow was a little deeper.

Squall tried to resist, holding his ground at first. But she was nearly pulling his arm out of socket and he finally relented, taking the steps slowly in case they were iced over. "You need to at least put on some warmer clothes," he said worriedly as if he was finally noticing her coatless attire. "You're going to get pneumonia."

"You worry too much, you know that?" the ninja teased, picking up another handful of snow and _trying _to make a snowball, but the snow refused to stick together. "You should just let loose occasionally." She tossed the handful of snow at him, the semi-formed ball falling apart and the snow just falling to the ground. A slight scowl came over her face at that, quickly replaced with another smile.

"Fine. I worry too much and you worry too little. I think that balances things out, doesn't it?" Squall told her as he leaned against the stone wall, crossing his arms over his chest and staring at her through a screen of mahogany bangs. He scoffed lightly at her attempts to make another snowball. "And new snow doesn't make good snowballs."

Crinkling her nose in distaste, Yuffie dropped the snow from her hand and raised her arms in the air, spinning around and sticking her tongue out in an attempt to catch a snowflake on it. She noticed she nearly got a laugh out of Squall and stopped spinning before throwing herself backwards into the snow. Apparently, she didn't realize that four inches of snow would _not_ provide enough padding to prevent the pain of falling onto a stone courtyard. "That... hurt..." she moaned as she sat up gingerly and rubbed her backside.

"I could've told you that," Squall sighed, pushing off the wall and walking towards her. He stopped right in front of her and stared down, his bangs still screening his eyes from her view.

Yuffie did her best to hide her wince from the pain and instead glare up at him. "Just shut up and help me back up again," she pouted, reaching up one hand to grasp his. But, she stopped when another idea came to her. "No... wait and minute."

Before Squall could say anything, she had fallen back into the snow, more carefully this time, and was waving her arms and legs, making an angel in the snow. "Now, you can help me up," she told him once her angel was complete.

As he reached down to help her up, Yuffie grabbed his hand and her fingers slipped off, taking his glove with them. She giggled and grabbed his hand again, feeling the warmth from his hand spread into her frozen digits. "You have warm hands..." she mused aloud, not relinquishing his hand once she was standing upright again.

"It happens when you remember to wear gloves," he muttered drily, squeezing her hand gently to help warm the fingers.

A shiver she had been suppressing racked Yuffie's frame, and before she could stop her mouth, she said aloud what she had been thinking. "Put 'em down my shirt! I'm freezing!"

Time seemed to stop for a moment while Yuffie's face blazed bright red and Squall said nothing. After a moment, the ninja felt her companion begin to tremble beside her and she watched as he raised his free hand to cover his mouth to hold back the laughter threatening to escape. It didn't take much longer until she was laughing along with him.

"Yuffie," Squall began once their laughter came under control again, "I think I will keep my hands to myself for the time being... at least until we are no longer out in the open."

"Oh, come on! You know you want me! I mean, just look at _how _sexy I am!" she teased, striking what would have been a seductive stance had it not been for her crossed eyes and tongue sticking out of her mouth. She held that position for a minute, until her eyes started to hurt and another shiver raced through her. But, this time, the shiver stayed, becoming a steady trembling as the cold began to seep through her clothes. It was then that she realized coming out _without _a coat and gloves might have been a bad idea.

Squall, who was trying not to laugh _too _loudly at his lithe girlfriend, was brought back to his 'serious' mode when he noticed her visible shivers. "I think you need to go back in, Yuf. It's too cold out here to be dressed like that," he intoned, placing his ungloved hand on her cheek and feeling the chilled skin.

"But I don't want to go back in," Yuffie started to whine, looking around at all the snow on the ground and at the snow still falling. It had been so long since she had seen it and now she was half-afraid that if she went inside, it would just magically disappear.

"Yuffie..." the swordsman began warningly, lowering his gaze to hers.

"But, Squallie!"

Wincing at the name she called him when she wasn't getting what she wanted, Squall simply picked her up around the waist and hoisted her over his shoulders. "We're going in until you warm up some and _then_ we can come back out."

Yuffie glared at his back, lying there limply until she realized that she was in the perfect position for revenge. Raising her hand, she brought it down with a hard smack on his butt, causing him to jerk and nearly drop her. "Ha!" she exclaimed victoriously, beginning to kick her legs as well.

Growling playfully under his breath, Squall forced her legs down to keep them from kicking him in the face and let her slide further down his back, like he was going to drop her. At her shriek and beating on the back of his legs, he relented and dragged her back up until she was at her previous position. "Are you going to behave now?" he questioned, still holding her feet down to keep them from kicking.

"May-be," she answered in a sing-song voice, trying to twist to the side so she could look up at his face. She felt herself start to slide once more and quickly changed her answer. "Okay okay okay... I'll be good now. I promise. Ninja's honor."

"The same ninja honor that kept you from stealing?" Squall asked suspiciously.

"The one and the same," Yuffie replied proudly, biting the inside of her cheeks to keep from laughing.

"Then I don't think I completely trust you considering what Huey, Dewey, and Louie have been saying lately," he said matter of factly.

"You're going to believe those stupid ducks over _me_?!" she squealed as he began to let her slide down again.

"I think so."

"_Squall!"_

The conversation continued like this the whole way back to the hotel room, earning a concerned glance from the manager as they passed by his desk and a few glares from guests who had been rudely awakened by a ninja's shrill shrieks.

Finally reaching their room, Squall marched through the door and carried Yuffie directly into the bathroom, dropping her unceremoniously onto the floor in a shivering mess while he turned the hot water on to let it warm up. "A hot bath will warm you up the fastest," he explained, though no explanation was necessary. She had figured out what was going on when he brought her in here.

Steam began pouring out of the faucet and Squall wordlessly adjusted the temperature for her before plugging the bathtub drain. He turned to face her and found her sitting on the toilet seat lid, staring at him. Smiling, she silently raised her arms and Squall pulled her sweatshirt over her head, leaving her in only the thin camisole she wore beneath it and her pants. But, her pants soon joined her sweatshirt in a heap on the floor and her legs were bared. He planted a kiss on her forehead and turned to leave her alone in the bathroom when her voice stopped him.

"You can join me if you want," Yuffie whispered, keeping her eyes on the floor and refusing to look at him. She was half-excited and half-afraid of what his answer would be. Yes, she _did_ want him to join her in the bath, but she was also scared if he did. They had been taking things slow because of her age _and_ the nearly nine year age gap; neither of them wanted the small town to be talking about them.

"I know I can. But, I won't... not yet, Yuffie," Squall murmured as he opened the door to leave the room.

The ninja smiled once more, closing her eyes in happy acceptance. They would both know when the time was right. "Merry Christmas, Squall," she called before the door shut.

"Merry Christmas, Yuffie."

* * *

_Fluff. This whole story was fluff. Okay, so maybe it was an excuse for me to make a story that was entirely fluff AND with snow. Because I love snow. We never get it here. _

_Anyways, review for me and I'll be a happy puppy!_


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